Former selectmen wants to address neglected needs

Thursday

Oct 3, 2013 at 2:14 PM

By Michael Kane, BANNER EDITOR

BOYLSTON — Not too long ago, when the economy was better, Boylston had started to look at its long-term responsibilities. Now, a former member of the Board of Selectmen says it is time to follow the path set in motion in the mid-2000s.

Frank Reale met with current selectmen last week to talk about a plan to build a new building for the fire department, highway department and, possibly, the Water District. He first proposed the idea at a multi-committee meeting in 2006, as a member of the Board of Selectmen. At the time, competing interests were calling for a new library and a new school.

The school has been built, the library has started a long-term renovation plan. Now, "it's time to get moving" on the town's other capital needs, Reale said.

"We talked about this 10 years ago, nothing has been done yet," Reale said. "The DPW is in trouble, the fire station is falling apart. We don't have room to store vehicles."

Reale pointed out that inaction is costing the town money, because highway department vehicles are left outside in the elements, due to a lack of space. The result is a shorter vehicle life span. The fire department is paying rent for one of its vehicles.

"We can't blame the people in charge, because they (vehicles) are outside all the time," Reale said.

Most of Reale's presentation was identical to what he had proposed years ago. Why Reale was before selectmen was simple, he said. He wanted the board to either say yes to his continued assistance, or to tell him whether they had no intention of moving forward.

"Tonight, the only thing I am asking selectmen to do is think about it," Reale said, adding that he was willing to help the town, but did not want to waste his time.

Where Reale could run into some push back from the board is funding the project. Also, one of his proposals is likely to be rejected, he noted.

Reale provided several options. The least costly would be a new highway department barn. The second option is a combined Water District and Highway Department building.

The third option, and the most expensive, is a mega-complex for all three departments.

In regard to the Water District, Reale referred to the objections already posed by that entity, which is a legally autonomous and elected body. However, he also repeatedly noted this was not an attempt to pull the Water District into the town, nor to put its control in the hands of selectmen. But, he said, the sharing of a building made sense.

The highway department and Water District often work together. The two departments share equipment when needed. A headquarters would benefit the Water District by providing a central location for records, which the district does not now have, Reale said.

"If I am a developer, and I want to know something, if I want water information, where do I go?" Reale asked. "There is no place to keep records.

"I'm not trying to take over," he added. "everybody thinks when you talk like that that you are trying to take over the Water Department ... they will still be a separate entity, just like the Light Department is."

Funding the project Reale's way, by selling property, could find resistance from at least one selectman, Michael May, who has alternate plans for the land in question.

When first proposed, Reale had suggested selling the town-owned land on Sewall Street for housing. In fact, he said the town was made an offer that it refused. Instead, the then-board of selectmen, with Reale objecting, opted to use the land for an affordable housing development.

At the time, it was thought the project would fulfill the town's 10 percent affordable requirement, protecting the town from future hostile developers, who could bypass the town's zoning bylaws. However, Reale said the deal provided the town with far less revenue than a straight sale.

"I don't know what it is worth now, but it is probably worth more than it was eight to 10 years ago," Reale said.

Selling the land now, as the housing market is beginning to recover, could garner the town millions, he said. Couple that with money the town has saved, and Reale feels the town would require only limited, or maybe no, borrowing, to meet out a host of capital needs.

"We have money in Stabilization, the Water District might contribute. There are a bunch of different ways we could do it, if you want to do it," he said. "Or, we could sit here and talk for 10 years. I think we should have some action now."

Not discussed directly was May's plan for the Sewall Street property. May is working with the Business Marketing Committee (BMC) and several landowners along the Route 140 Corridor to come up with a plan for development along the stretch of road that has been the target of town's efforts for decades. The largest obstacle has always been the lack of sewers.

However, May and BMC member James Ricciardi have proposed a micro-sewer system. It would operate like a septic system, cover a limited area and is now preferred over larger systems by the state. If the town were to help provide that, the best option is the Sewall Street land. Although, there is privately-owned land that could also serve that function.

May did not object to Reale's proposal. In fact, he agreed with the needs assessment. However, he differentiated the two ideas as a revenue generating proposal versus a spending proposal. He did approve of the concept, but he asked Reale to take a different approach.

May suggested Reale get together with department heads to first come up with concept designs for a complex. That way, the town would have some idea of the pending costs before moving forward on paying for engineers and architects for what could be an ambitious plan.

"We need an appropriate design ... cost before we go out and try to find a way to fund it," May said, adding: "400,000 is different than $1.2 million. I think we need to find out what the expense is before we try to fund it."

Reale is set to come back before the board at an upcoming meeting to present his discussion with department heads.